Movie Picks

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*Batman Begins (PG-13) Christopher Nolan's remarkable re-invention of the Batman franchise, rescued from the campy influences of the '60s television series and the various movie incarnations of the last two decades, is amazing. Nolan (Memento, Insomnia), who knows his Batman, borrows from the Depression-era origins of the comic book superhero but relies more on the late '80s rebirth of the Dark Knight by Frank Miller, who created Sin City for DC Comics. Christian Bale's Bruce/Batman is delightfully dark and tortured. The supporting performances are uniformly strong, including those of an almost unrecognizable Gary Oldman as Lt. James Gordon, the only good cop in Gotham, and of Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox, a veteran inventor buried in the bowels of Wayne Enterprises who helps outfit and equip the newborn Batman. -- Kathryn Eastburn

Cinemark 16 IMAX, Tinseltown

Bewitched (PG-13) Picture Show

*Charlie & the Chocolate Factory (PG) First understand: This is a revision, not a remake. Cast presumptive likenesses to 1971's Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory tothe wind, and let the movies exist as separate entities. To wide-eyed perfection, Freddie Highmore plays Charlie Bucket, a jug-eared boy who lives with his poor parents and his four bed-ridden grandparents in an absurdly ramshackle house in London. Swoon-star Depp is as odd as they come as Wonka. At times appearing intensely determined and, at others, going massively broad, he recalls the way he played Hunter S. Thompson. Director Tim Burton both remains true to Roald Dahl's book and departs wildly from it. Actor Deep Roy deserves some sort of medal for the hundreds of Oompa shoes he fills; he plays all of the tiny workers. Though their new songs are full of gratuitous visual bling, they're unfortunately no longer fun sing-alongs -- in fact, you can barely understand a word. Charlie's conclusion tosses some loops -- especially for Wonka -- to create what ultimately is a satisfying twist. Though Charlie isn't all cotton-candy fluff, it's mostly exciting, mindless fun. -- Kara Luger

Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo (R) Rob Schneider again stars as Deuce Bigalow, a man-whore, as he learns his craft at gigolo school in Europe. He has a new clientele and is exposed to the secret society of gigolos. -- Not reviewed

Fantastic Four (PG-13) A group of astronauts develops superpowers and proves that it is, indeed, clobbering time. -- Not reviewed

Chapel Hills 15, Tinseltown

Four Brothers (R) The four brothers in Four Brothers behave just like ... well, four brothers. When the Mercer boys reunite in Detroit for the funeral of Evelyn (Fionnula Flanagan), the woman who adopted them all, Bobby (Mark Wahlberg), Angel (Tyrese Gibson), Jeremiah (Andr Benjamin) and Jack (Garrett Hedlund) interact with the kind of coarse familiarity you'd expect from siblings. If anything else in Four Brothers had been as authentic as the fraternal sparring, director John Singleton might have had a truly exceptional character drama on his hands. But character quickly becomes an afterthought as the real plot kicks into gear. The Mercer brothers find evidence that the convenience store hold-up in which Mrs. Mercer was killed actually may have been an execution, with her as the target. And four guys as hardened as this quartet aren't about to let anyone get away with plugging their mama. When it's all about the action, Four Brothers does at times deliver some visceral satisfaction. But every time you think Four Brothers is on to something gripping, it does something stupid. Singleton appears to give up on everything except the clunky satisfactions of his comeuppance-driven plot machine, abandoning the little truths that make stories memorable for a bunch of stuff that just makes you want to go, "Oh, brother." -- Scott Renshaw

Carmike 10, Chapel Hills 15, Cinemark 16, Tinseltown

The Great Raid (R) Set in the Philippines in 1945, Lt. Col. Henry Mucci (Benjamin Bratt) leads the 6th Ranger Battalion on a daring rescue mission to liberate American prisoners of war. -- Not reviewed

Chapel Hills 15, Tinseltown

Herbie: Fully Loaded (G) Maggie (Lindsay Lohan) becomes the new owner of Number 53, a Volkswagen Beetle with a mind of its own. She and the car train to compete in NASCAR. Also starring Matt Dillon, Michael Keaton and Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- Not reviewed

Chapel Hills 15

House of Wax (R) Picture Show

The Island (PG-13) Tasty morsel Ewan McGregor stars as Lincoln Six-Echo, a genial futuristic fellow who lives with other genial people in a utopian center, having escaped above-ground "containment." Of course, Lincoln realizes there's more to life, and he and his pal Jordan Two-Delta (Scarlett Johansson) escape, only to find out how supremely messed up things actually are. It's a fun thriller, with tons of fast, mind-numbing foot/car/motorcycle chases. Though the "life is not as we know it" premise has been done before, The Island still is "ew"-inducing and probably will spark morality debates. Interestingly, for a flick that involves subliminal messages, it sure contains a lot of product placement. -- Kara Luger

Cinemark 16

Kicking and Screaming (PG) Picture Show

The Longest Yard (PG-13) Picture Show

*March of the Penguins (G) French director Luc Jacquet and his cinematographers, Laurent Chalet and Jrme Maison, suffered -80 degree temperatures and violent winter windstorms to bring us this footage from a year in the lifecycle of the Emperor penguin. Not only have they made a fascinating film; it's crossed into the mainstream of summer releases, a remarkable feat for a documentary of any kind. Actor Morgan Freeman provides the narration for Penguins' American version, sounding grandfatherly and wise, if a bit repetitive. "This is a love story," Freeman tells us in the opening moments. It's a statement that might drive cynics away, but shouldn't. Penguins avoids smarmy anthropomorphism, showing us bitter truths about survival as the birds defy all odds to mate, reproduce and send their offspring into this wide, icy homeland. -- Kathryn Eastburn

Chapel Hills 15, Cinemark 16, Kimball's Twin Peak

Monster-in-Law (PG-13) Charlotte Honeywell (Jennifer Lopez) has a disastrous dating life until she meets "the perfect man," Kevin Fields (Michael Vartan). However, his mother, Viola (Jane Fonda), is willing to go to great lengths to destroy their relationship. -- Not reviewed

Picture Show

*Mr. and Mrs. Smith (PG-13) Though it's 30 minutes too long (at two hours) and more closely resembles a television miniseries than a movie, Mr. and Mrs. Smith is a snarky romantic comedy disguised as an ultra-violent action thriller. It works. This is about the only kind of movie in which Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie could be well cast together, a tongue-in-cheek wink at every suburbanite's secret dream to be James Bond or La Femme Nikita. Pitt plays Mr. Smith, who plays as an import-export exec when he's not pulling off assassinations. Mrs. Smith, likewise, covers up her deadly trade by masquerading as a temp agency CEO. When they're assigned to the same target, however, the sparks start to fly as each character attempts to be the bigger badass. -- Dan Wilcock

Cinemark 16

Must Love Dogs (PG-13) A 40-something divorcee looks to the personals for a change of pace and a relationship. Starring Diane Lane, John Cusack, Elizabeth Perkins, Christopher Plummer, Dermot Mulroney and Stockard Channing. -- Not reviewed

Chapel Hills 15, Cinemark 16, Tinseltown

Robots (PG) Picture Show

Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (PG) Picture Show

The Skeleton Key (PG-13) See full review on page 48.

Carmike 10, Chapel Hills 15, Cinemark 16, Tinseltown

Sky High (PG) Will (Michael Angarano), the son of superheroes Captain Stronghold (Kurt Russell) and Josie Jetstream (Kelly Preston), tries to find a balance between being a normal teenager and an extraordinary superhero. -- Not reviewed

Carmike 10, Chapel Hills 15, Cinemark 16, Tinseltown

*Star Wars: Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith (PG-13) Picture Show

Stealth (PG-13) Oh, Jamie Foxx, what happened? You were in Oscar-winning form in Ray, and now you're playing not-even-second fiddle to a stealth jet. Foxx and other pretty faces Josh Lucas and Jessica Biel are Navy pilots who are enlisted to test an experimental artificial intelligence-driven jet. Of course, the jet, which sounds like HAL from 2001: A Space Odyssey, gets hit by lightning, causing it to think on its own. All hell breaks loose, but there's still time to worry about our fighter pilots scoring some booty. Absolute schlock from beginning to finish. -- Kara Luger

Cinemark 16, Tinseltown

War of the Worlds (PG-13) Beyond the glitzy surface of expensive special effects and superstar actors, Steven Spielberg's newest blockbuster boils down to one message: Only the strong (and maybe the lucky) survive. It's strange that the man who made Schindler's List, one of the greatest cinematic tributes to the power of compassion amid terror and death, would make a film so devoted to grim biological calculation and familial protection. Dakota Fanning is the star of the chase, as Tom Cruise's daughter Rachel, her wonderfully expressive face registering terror and resolve as she and her dad slog through pulsating alien slime pools. Cruise wears his usual jocko mask, but luckily it doesn't matter much who is playing the role of Ray. We quickly learn he's just another pitiful human clawing to get by. In the end, War of the Worlds is similar to Star Wars III in its brutality and darkness of vision. Perhaps these films fit the times. -- Dan Wilcock

Cinemark 16

*Wedding Crashers (R) For a while, Wedding Crashers feels like a throwback to all that was gloriously raunchy about the vintage efforts of 25 years ago. Its titular protagonists are John (Owen Wilson) and Jeremy (Vince Vaughn), a pair of best buddies in Washington D.C., who have learned the secret of picking up women by posing as party guests at weddings. At a ceremony for the daughter of Secretary of the Treasury William Cleary (Christopher Walken), John and Jeremy set their eyes on the bride's two sisters. But while Gloria (Isla Fisher) is only too happy to play along with Jeremy, John discovers that Claire (Rachel McAdams) already has a boyfriend. The smitten John isn't about to give up, however, and convinces Jeremy to extend their role-playing to a weekend trip to the Cleary family home. It's here that Vaughn gets to soar, dealing with the clingy, crazy Gloria to give his buddy a chance to close the deal. The first half of Wedding Crashers is inspired enough that even its late loss of momentum can't completely spoil its pleasures, but it's disappointing to see yet another contender for the lowbrow throne brought down by its lack of resolve. -- Scott Renshaw